The Anthony Von Mandl Owned Family Winery Also Gets Top World Award For Its Pinot Noir!
The Tuesday night’s event to celebrate Mission Hill Family Estate winery winningCanadian Winery of the Year honours was attended by Former Judge and formerBC Attorney General Wally Oppal, businessman Bal Gidda, Surrey board of tradeCEO Anita Hubberman, our very own South Asian LINK editor R. Paul Dhillon, anda number of senior business leaders such as downtown developer Bob Lee. RickBonitati, Mission Hill’s newly appointed President of winery and vineyard estates,accepted the award from Anthony Gismondi, the Chairman of the National WineAwards and a well known writer on wine for the Vancouver Sun.
VANCOUVER – The Mission HillFamily Estate winery held a special winetasting event in downtown Vancouver onTuesday to celebrate a winning year forthe Anthony Von Mandl family ownedwinery which saw it winning the prestigiousCanadian Winery of the Year awardat the WineAlign National Wine Awards,which had 150 wineries and 1200 winesentered in 2013.The competition’s rigorous judgingprocess is led by the most respected MasterSommeliers and Masters of wine inCanada.“The Canadian Wineryof the Year designation isas big as it gets in Canadianwine,” said Anthony Gismondi,the Chairman ofthe National Wine Awardsand a well known writeron wine for the VancouverSun.Gismondi, who was onhand for Tuesday night’sAward presentation soireeat Joey’s in Bental OneMall, added: “We are proudand delighted that the performanceof Mission HillFamily Estate led all otherin 2013.”The Canadian Wineryof the Year award is the resultof Mission Hill winningseveral individual medals,including Platinum Medalsfor the 2011 Reserve Rieslingand 2009 Compendiumand Gold Medals for 2010Perpetua, 2011 ReserveChardonnay and 2011 ReserveRiesling Icewine.A s part of the vonMandl family’s commitmentto the future, Rick Bonitatiwas recently appointed asPresident of winery andvineyard estates.For 20 years, Bonitatiwas at Jackson FamilyWines in California wherehe was responsible for variousroles in sales, vineyardoperations,farming, andwinemaking at several oftheir key ultra premiumwineries, including La Cremaand Kendall Jackson.Bonitati , who acceptedthe award from Gismondion Tuesday, added, “Fromthe first time I visited theOkanagan Valley, walkingthrough Mission Hill’s estatevineyards and tastingthe wines, I knew there wassomething very special andunique here. This prestigiousaward underscores myrationale for being drawnto this region and my passionto continue producingwines of distinct characterand unprecedented qualityright here in the OkanaganValley.”Mission Hill also wontop honours as ‘World’sBest Pinot Noir’ at the DecanterWorld Wine Awards,the world’s leading winecompetition. This yearmore than 14,000 winesfrom 61 regions around theworld were entered in thecompetition and MissionHill 2011 Martin’s Lane PinotNoir won a coveted InternationalTrophy for bestPinot Noir, the competition’stop award.The Decanter Trophywas presented at a black-tieaffair at the Royal OperaHouse in London by thelegendary Steven Spurrier,Chairman of the DecanterWorld Wine Awards. This isa ground-breaking achievementfor Mission Hill FamilyEstate and a seminalmoment for the entire Canadianwine industry.About Mission HillFamily EstateEstablished in 1981by Anthony von Mandl,Mission Hill Family Estateis located in the heart ofBritish Columbia’s pristineOkanagan Valley. This familyowned winery is worldrenowned for its award winningwines and spectacularsetting. Majestic mountains,scenic lakes and lush orchardsencase the winery’sdramatic architecture andculminate in a setting thatcelebrates wine, food, andthe arts. Chief WinemakerJohn Simes, in his 22ndharvest with the winery,leads the winemaking andviticulture teams in theirpursuit of quality as theyfarm several distinct estatevineyards in the OkanaganValley. Mission Hill’s elegant,internationally acclaimedportfolio celebratesthe unique character of oneof the world’s most exciting,emerging wine regions.With sustainable practicesthat ensure care for the environment,and a timelessnessthat respects the vonMandl family’s Europeanheritage, guests experiencethe height of winemakingin an incomparable location.
